Job Responsibilities
Interviewing clients and obtaining information: 8 hours per week
Observational studies: 16 hours per week
Statistical anlaysis: 30 hours per week
Business problem definition (benchmarking, synthesis and
prioritization): 10 hours per week
Preparation of reports and presentations: 20 hours per week
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Job Requirements
Quality of classes ranging from 6 to 8 our of 10 (average 7): Many
of the professors had taught at INSEAD or Harvard and other school
of this stature and it showed, like all universities there were
some professors who knew less than the students but then that is
what an MBA is all about right?
Ease of getting popular classes 7 out of 10: I obtained every one
of my 9 preferred electives, although the schedule conflict
prevented me from applying for one I wanted, and overall an
advanced online bid system ensured the process worked extremely well.
The grading was overall very fair.
The workload was difficult at first but became a very rewarding
challenge by the end of the course, and still allowed at least one
night of drinking for all but the busiest few weeks!
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Uppers
As an international consultant I am able to gain a lot of exposure to different
industries and cultures very quickly. I see a lot of business problems and have
learned very quickly to be able to focus on opportunities for the business
concerned, which is both personally gratifying and at the same time good for my
personal development.
Because of the particular consulting firm and region, my job also involves a lot
of international assignments and the opportunity to work on my second language
(Spanish).
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Downers
The hours are more often than not ridiculous.
There is also no personal development apart from that which I gain
from being on the job, and I have often had to share rooms with
other people when on assignment which is very irritating.
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Lifestyle
I work between 80 and 100 hours a week on initial assignments with clients, and
then have a week off every month or two. The week off is great, but it is no
replacement for regular sport or other healthy interests which cannot be
maintained during the working weeks. The dress code depends completely on the
client (ranging from jeans, to business casual, to formal), and there are zero
company events.
The opportunity to pock up great souvenirs for the family, buy cheap duty free
every couple of weeks when coming through airports and partake in great food and
music from different countries is limited, but nevertheless a perk!
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Compensation
My base salary is equivalent of USD$1500 per week actually worked,
and bonus of another 50% for all resulting projects (about 70% of
work becomes projects). Per diem allowance for each week of work
is USD$160.
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Advice to Jobseekers
The job outlook for the consulting industry is great. Businesses
need outside help, and this is increasingly so as operating
environments become more global, more competitive, more repsonsive
to consumer needs etc...
My best advice is:
1. Make sure you are the right person for consulting and
consulting is right for you (see the Vault guides for the
checklist of "love long hours, academic and inquisitive in nature,
mathematically-minded, love spreadsheets etc etc"
2. Choose your firm carefully. Research everything possible about
the firm. Find past or current employees who will do an
"informational interview" with you, or at the very least have an
informal chat over a beer or coffee. Ask a lot of questions at
the interview about travel policies, client portfolio, team size
and structure (the shorter the project time frame, the more people
you need or the less sleep you will get!), timing of assignments,
vacation policy, training and development...
You are better off with a different career than with a consulting
career (that's right for you) in a bad consulting firm - the bad
firms are VERY bad and nothing wil compensate for a miserable
daily existence when that day is 16 hours long!
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